Coaching training

Coaching training can be undertaken at a variety of levels, for instance to equip individuals to become coaches within their organisations or to ready someone for a career as a coach.  Team leaders and first line managers can be made more effective in their jobs through coaching training, allowing them to get the best from their line reports through a coaching relationship.

Coaching is a highly context-dependent discipline: the structure of a coaching relationship, its content, the questions asked, goals set and methods of evaluation will depend on the organisations and individuals involved.  Because of this we believe that effective coaching training should include practical, hands-on experience in which book or classroom learning are applied and assessed.

Coaching training, like any training, will give you new knowledge.  But beyond this, effective training equips the new coach with the ability to apply that knowledge and the insight to adapt their approach and techniques to the person being coached.

What key attributes does coaching training develop?

A good coach requires a complex practical skillset, hands-on experience, and the ability to evaluate and refine the quality and effectiveness of the coaching they provide. These are not attributes that can be developed just by reading a book: as well as experience they require properly structured training. Successful coaches possess the appropriate core skills, knowledge and personal attributes, which they apply in a variety of ways and styles, in response to the needs of the situation and individual.

Training gives coaches a deep and practical knowledge of coaching models and approaches, and when to use them to help define problems and opportunities, goals, actions and action plans, evaluations and follow ups. Training also equips coaches with core coaching skills, including the ability to ask insightful questions, listen actively, and communicate in a clear and simple way.

Coaching is based on a premise that there is always room for improvement. The successful coach always looks for further improvement – both in their own performance and in that of the person that they coach. They will regularly assess how effective they are at applying their skills and knowledge to help the coachee achieve high performance, and will measure their impact and set targets for future achievement.

Finally, good self-awareness and awareness of others is essential for a coach. Emotional Quotient (EQ) is a vital quality for coaches. That emotional awareness allows a coach to "read" people and tailor their approach accordingly in order to build powerful and positive relationships, challenging their coachees, and covering difficult conversations, in a non-threatening and constructive way.

The challenges of coaching

Coaching is not a soft option, although it is often misunderstood as such. It is not about having a cosy chat, but rather it is about having the difficult conversations. Good coaching requires skill, discipline, time and energy and appropriate training helps new coaches develop these skills. Coaches must prepare for interventions and review them, for example. They must clearly document the issues covered, and the actions and targets agreed. So coaching is anything but a soft option.

The risks of untrained coaching

There are a number of dangers around untrained and inexperienced coaches attempting to coach their team members and colleagues.  For example, they may think and feel that they are coaching, but in reality it is all too easy to default to one-to-one instruction at one extreme, or counselling at the other.

Counselling is a very dangerous area for untrained managers, as they risk opening up powerful personal issues that need specialist skills to be dealt with constructively. One-to-one instruction is not coaching. In comparison to skilled coaching it is highly inefficient, in terms of the time spent and the development obtained. Yet it is many managers’ default management approach – particularly when under pressure.